Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Happy St Patty’s Day! I celebrated the holiday by running a little 5k. On Saturday evening I ran the Luckython 5k out at the Reserve Vineyard and Golf Club in Aloha, OR. I ran another race out there in October so I knew it was a beautiful and fast place to run.

I signed up last minute, as usual, and tried to keep the pressure low. But, these evening races are very tough mentally! I was all wired all afternoon and couldn’t wait to get it over with. I always get nervous before any race, even a little 5k, but this all-day nerves business is ridiculous. I need to stop signing up for these! There were actually several other races going on that day- mine was at 6:15 but there was also one at 4:00 pm and another at 7:30. Weird to have so many different start times, but that’s how this race company likes to do things. For me, it meant a very small race that was mine to lose.

I knew it was a small field, and no one looked particularly intimidating, so I hoped to place high or win. I also had personal time goals, but would settle for one or the other. My PR is another ancient one (2006) and I was ready to wipe it out. However, the 22:07 is a tough pace and I had no idea if I’d be able to beat it.

The weather was lousy all day but the skies cleared just in time for the run. It was perfect, and so beautiful. It was cold (45, “feels like” 37) but I raced in a tank top and shorts. I fed the baby in the car and headed to the starting line. I jogged around a little, mostly to stay warm, and then we lined up. There was a young cross-country girl that I hoped was speedy but that was about it. That was the first time I actually worried that I wouldn’t have anyone fast to chase or push me. What a weird worry!

We started and right away I ran ahead of the young girl and a tall guy. I felt like I was sprinting so I tried kind of settling into a more sustainable pace. The sun was shining bright off the wet path and it was kind of blinding, but the scenery was super gorgeous. I was running completely alone. Which honestly kind of sucked. I had NO idea how fast I was running- I was once again going watch-free (garmin on, just didn’t look at it) so I had nothing to base my pace off. And whenever I had a chance to look behind me there was no one in sight. So I just continued to run as hard as I could, asking myself “could I be running faster?” and always answering “No thank you.” I feel like there were times I kind of slacked off but I tried to pick it back up when I realized this. It didn’t take long until the golf club was back in sight and I was headed toward the finish. I saw Zach and his mom and aunt and sprinted to the finish line.

I saw the clock as I crossed and was surprised and immediately frustrated by my time!! 22:04! A PR by the skin of my teeth. But SO close to under 22:00 which was my “dream goal.” I was super happy though, and finished feeling great. I felt like maybe I did have a little gas left in the tank, and I immediately felt like I could have run faster (easy to say after the fact). I am already looking for a big 5k race to see if I can make that happen and break 22:00!